Composition, standardization and chemical profiling of Banisteriopsis caapi, a plant for the treatment of neurodegenerative disorders relevant to Parkinson's disease.
Journal of ethnopharmacology April 21, 2010 Yan-Hong Wang, Volodymyr Samoylenko, Babu L Tekwani et al. 73 citations
Banisteriopsis caapi, a vine used in ayahuasca, shows promise for treating neurological disorders like Parkinson's disease. This work developed standardized aqueous extracts from different plant parts, locations, and seasons, then tested them in vitro for inhibition of human monoamine oxidases (MAO) and antioxidant activity. HPLC analysis revealed that dried bark from large branches contained the highest concentrations of key chemical markers (1, 2, 5, 7-9). Harmine, harmaline, and tetrahydroharmine were responsible for MAO-A inhibition, while epicatechin and procyanidine B2 produced antioxidant effects. Commercial dried stems had lower marker content and reduced potency compared to the Da Vine source. The results support traditional use of bark from mature stems.